One Piece: Inevitable Showdown
by Black' Victor Cachat
Summary: Vice-Admiral Smoker and the marines contemplate the oncoming climax of the Great Pirate War between the last two surviving Emperors, Blackbeard and Straw Hat, and reflect on the events that led up to this nightmare. One-shot.


I do not own One Piece

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 **Originally written before chapter 816, updated while waiting for chapter 871**

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Inevitable Showdown

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It was a clear night in the New World, with the stars blinking cheerfully in the sky, yet still the marines were nervous as they patrolled around the base, trying to not look at a particular small but unearthly glow in the distance. Massive battleships surrounded the island, packed close enough together for sailors to leap from one to the next, while countless numbers of their smaller cousins sailed around on patrol. Each ship was manned and ready for battle, all of them knowing despite whatever their superiors tried to tell them, the lies they tried to reassure the scared public with, that monsters were fighting the greatest war in history just beyond the horizon: the Great Pirate War.

A war to determine who would rule the seas.

Inside the austere base, behind massive guns and walls, marines on guard or resting from a rigorous day of training, technicians struggling at late hours to repair their remaining cyborg Pacifistas, all of the senior marine officers were gathered together to go over the latest intelligence that had been gathered. Distinguished and battle-hardened captains, commodores who had demonstrated their ability to lead their men through hell time and again, rear-admirals who had proven their total and utter loyalty World Government, and finally, the vice-admirals who had spearheaded all of their previous offenses in the New World. Even an admiral was quietly present, one of the Government's three Ultimate Powers, whose presence was the last deterrent against marauding pirates reaching the increasingly fearful populace of Mariejois.

In front of the room, with his back to the seated officers, stood the proud figure of their leader: Vice-Admiral Smoker. Despite being overshadowed in bulk, stature, and seniority by the other vice-admirals, the Fleet Admiral and World Government had put him in charge of their efforts in the New World, commanding both his own G-5 branch and three other bases worth of marines and ships; an unprecedented force that dwarfed even the assemblage at Marineford to fight Whitebeard and his followers three years ago.

And it was not enough.

 _We're losing, the_ World Government _is losing_ , Smoker thought to himself with weary resignation. _The others, blinded by their belief that the World Government is perfect, can't see it, but it's in the air._

 _Tthe absolute failure of the Warlord system, more and more nations joining the Revolution, the growing strain between the Navy and the World Nobles, and our impotence to stop the growing pirate threat_.

The other assembled ranking officers gazed in frustration at the large map on the wall, depicting the territories of the last two surviving Pirate Emperors: 'Blackbeard' Marshall D. Teach, and 'Straw Hat' Monkey D. Luffy. Pins and drawn lines showed their forces, as well as the efforts by the Navy to kill even a single one of the menaces. Other maps showed the known locations of the increasingly bold Revolutionary forces, who were an equal threat to the pirates. Worse, they were all but openly cooperating with Straw Hat.

Everyone knew that Emperor Straw Hat and Sabo, the Leader of the Revolution, were sworn brothers since childhood, so the armies and fleets that answered to either one of them were pointedly cordial to each other. Revolutionaries could sail unhindered through Straw Hat's waters, and would come to the aid of anyone who flew under his protection. Blackbeard's people were another story, for the 'Army of the People' had always been willing to fight those who raided and plundered; their purpose was to _replace_ the World Government after all. So while there was no formal alliance between Revolutionaries or Straw Hats, their non-aggression benefited them both. Even worse, there was even limited trade between them, and a few joint missions had been carried out, usually orchestrated by 'Demon Child' Nico Robin, the so-called 'Light of the Revolution.'

As for Straw Hat himself, dozens of islands were now under his protection, and the original seven Division Commanders who had sworn fealty to him and risen to become twenty men and women who all-together commanded tens of thousands of pirates. A war machine that contained an ominous number individuals who were infamous in their own right, along with the support and military backing of other noteworthy allied pirates and even entire nations. Unlike Blackbeard – _And increasingly with the Navy after those idiotic hamfisted policies like conscription_ , Smoker thought with intense regret and shame—, Straw Hat held immense public support in his territories, including a regular flow of recruits, generous donations, and numerous safe harbours. While the Grand Fleet was forbidden from stealing supplies, being forced to actually purchase any goods, the grateful islands hoarded the best of their products to give or sell solely to their heroes and protectors.

 _Luffy's creating a counter-government even more than his brother is_ , the pink-haired Commodore Coby concluded, silently voicing the thoughts that Smoker, and all of the other marines, were trying not to think but Coby's Haki could readily hear. _By sheer luck, daring, and disregard for any law or taboo he's unknowingly building something that could_ replace _the World Government_.

In turn, Blackbeard had absorbed the surviving loyalists who had served under Kaido and Big Mom after Straw Hat had killed them both, expanding his fleets of savage and violent pirates who ruled over his islands with an iron fist and routine atrocities. If Straw Hat commanded the largest pirate fleet in history, his rival commanded the second-largest, with the crews augmented with an army possessing stolen Devil Fruit powers. Blackbeard had matched and surpassed Straw Hat's feats by not only killing Aokiji and absorbing his Devil Fruit power, but by also killing a second Pirate Emperor: 'Red-Hair' Shanks.

It had been an undeniably brilliant ambush, backed overwhelming raw power, yet Shanks had been happy to remind the world why he was feared as a living legend, despite being a normal, unpowered, one-armed human. His skill, cunning and insight had savaged his attackers, but Blackbeard had been as treacherous as ever, succeeding in landing a mortal blow. Clinging to life, Red Hair had been brought by his surviving crew to Straw Hat, which led to a final verbal exchange between them that only grew in the telling of the story.

Ben Beckman, the former first mate of the Red Hair pirates was then welcomed into the Straw Hat Grand Fleet and made the 16th Division Commander by his enthusiastic new peers, ignoring the protests of Straw Hat himself. Together with Marco the Phoenix and Pedro the Mink, the veteran pirates and their crews maintained the security of many islands that flew the Straw Hat Jolly Roger, and trained and tested new recruits, contently leaving the battles against Blackbeard to the newest generation of pirates.

While refusing to swear fealty to Straw Hat like those other famous pirates, a vengeful Buggy the Star Clown had defected from the Seven Warlords of the Sea to ally with them, bringing his formidable crew with him.

The reckless genius of the deployments of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet confounded more conservative officers, but Smoker could readily see Straw Hat's hand in them; the man was an idiot, except for the fact that he was a very good judge of character and had surrounded himself with a crew of brilliant people to give him advice. Moreover, he valued freedom and initiative. Certain Division Commanders were deployed with vague objectives, being free to handle the problem however the wished, with the knowledge he would support whatever decision they made (so long as they did not violate his laws or target innocents). Determined to justify this level of faith that was nearly unprecedented in the pirate world, the Divisions Commanders fanatically threw themselves into their missions, with each one reaping immense success.

 _And those idiots at HQ can't understand it because they don't understand Straw Hat, still seeing him as just another average criminal from the start_ , Smoker admitted to himself, having spent years studying his prey, aided by personal experience. The White Hunter was well aware that while Straw Hat was probably the most dangerous criminal in the world, he was anything but _average_. Moreover, the man had changed and matured over his career. _Straw Hat's selfish desires meant he didn't want to be responsible for anyone outside of his crew, yet he also wants to protect those he cares about, without seeing the contradiction. His fights with Doflamingo, Big Mom, and Kaido, taught him that he can't_ be _everywhere, so he_ _accepted the help of others in carrying out that role while he was elsewhere, and to help train others into becoming stronger so that they can protect themselves._

As for the Straw Hat crew itself, their ship would disappear from sight for days, weeks, or even months, and then reappear with some new spectacular victory, and/or a legendary pirate or crew converted as allies.

Smoker was broken out of his thoughts as he took note of the growing stress in the briefing room as the assembled officers, particularly Smoker's fellow vice-admirals, fought to suppress their need for action, and their beliefs that they could do a better job of leading this armada. Many of them smoldered under taking orders from the man, despite the fact that they were vastly more senior than them, but Smoker did not care as long as they followed orders. The presence of Admiral Fujitora in the corner at the back of the room, cheerfully eating a bowl of soup, only emphasized that the white-haired man was in charge.

The rest of the marines were enthusiastic about taking orders from Smoker, taken in by the man's reputation, and expecting a dramatic final confrontation between the White Hunter and Straw Hat, especially since Smoker was the one who had defeated and imprisoned the latter's father: Monkey D. Dragon.

They held their boss on the same pedestal as Vice-Admiral Garp, denied the rank of full Admiral solely because it meant less freedom of action in confronting pirates. Personally, Smoker knew it was all propaganda, that Dragon had been wounded in fighting of Blackbeard when the Pirate Emperor, and Aokiji, had discovered the Revolution's secret base, and Smoker was frankly unsure if Straw Hat held any real personal attachment to his father. Outside of being upset on behalf of his friends who did care for the enigmatic man.

"Smoker," Bastile finally spoke up, "if we're going to go after either of them, it must be Straw Hat- _dara_! His crimes against the Government are greater than Blackbeard's, and if we execute him, then the world will know that Justice still exists- _dara_!"

Murmurs of agreement, encircled the room, but then, "And just how are to do so?" Commodore Coby calmly asked. "Pinning him down anywhere is next to impossible, and then we'd have to somehow mobilize enough strength in time to defeat him before he moved on. And even if we did kill him, Blackbeard would catch wind and then attack to try to kill both sides; we'd lose the entire strike force! Blackbeard is the one killing civilians and making the citizens believe the Government cannot protect them anymore, _he_ should be our target!"

"It won't accomplish anything unless they're both dead!" Vice-Admiral Onigumo snapped at his juniors. "They've claimed the lives or fealty of every other pirate and Conqueror in the New World! Once we kill them, the World Government will've finally liberated the Grand Line!"

Angry words, threats, and outright accusations rebounded throughout the room until one by one they took note of Smoker's behaviour and quieted down. While their leader continued to glare at the map, the audience took in the growing tension in his body, and how his cigars were being uncharacteristically burned away. And then man just let out a large breath. Disposing of his used cigars, Smoker calmly lit a fresh pair, inhaled a calming breath of their aroma, and then turned to address the marines. "Straw Hat is going to win."

"And what makes you say such bold claims," Vice-Admiral Momonga asked condescendingly.

"Because now that Moriah's no longer killing giants to make them into a zombie army, and Crocodile is no longer sowing dissent, Straw Hat can finally concentrate all of the pirates he has under his command for a final, decisive battle," Smoker answered with his eyes closed, his face serene. "Under King Hajrudin, who's his 6th Division Commander, and the support of the two so-called 'great chieftains,' he'll have an entire army of giants for the first time in who knows how many centuries," a nightmare that the World Government had dreaded for an equally long period of time. Continuing, "The Grand Fleet is growing in size every day as ships swarm to join the Division Commanders in the New World, and Hancock and Bon Clay are killing off every pirate that comes through Paradise that might threaten Straw Hat before they become too strong, pre-emptively removing any potential new rivals."

Momonga frowned at that, seething at the remembered humiliation, while other marines stiffened in remembrance. About a year ago, shortly after Kaido's death, one of the Celestial Dragons had decided to leave the safety of Mariejois to take to the seas to prove to his fellow World Nobles that there was no one else who would dare defy their authority. No one knew the particulars of his chance encounter with 'Pirate Empress' Hancock, but she had not only defied him, she had actually _killed_ him; literally tearing the man to shreds with her bare hands. A crime that surpassed anything even Fisher Tiger or Straw Hat had committed.

To the world's horror, Hancock had then waged a bloody crusade with her army of Amazons, throwing aside years of cold dispassion for a wrath that was terrifying to behold for its savagery. Her rampage led her to the nearest marine base, where she and her sisters had singlehandedly torn down the walls and killed every single marine inside, male and female. The only survivors were the traumatized civilian support staff who were women. The Pirate Empress had then used the base's communication equipment to publicly declare to every neighbouring island that her treaty with the World Government was null and void, but she would be keeping her title as Warlord. Even worse, she had then boasted – _gloated!_ —how _she_ was the one responsible for Straw Hat breaking into Impel Down, right under Vice-Admiral Momonga's nose at that, and that it was the Amazons who had harboured Straw Hat during his two years in hiding. As a final act of treason, the Pirate Empress then announced to the whole world that she claimed the title of the 19th Division Commander of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet.

The other Division Commanders were quick to confirm her status, and Straw Hat gave his vow of protection for Amazon Lily.

Shortly afterwards, Jinbei, the tenth member of Straw Hat's crew, and perhaps the only man aside from Straw Hat that she would have tolerated working with, quickly reappeared in the Paradise side of the Grand Line, leading his old crew the Sun Pirates. The two of them had then led their forces to invade Impel Down, somehow traveling underwater without being attacked by the Sea Kings, and broke right through the very walls of the prison and entered straight into the bottommost level. Marine reinforcements racing to stop the invasion were dismayed to discover their worst fears confirmed as a liberated Monkey D. Dragon destroyed their ships. Compounding the nightmare, a criminal known as Bentham, or Bon Clay, a prisoner who had been instrumental in Straw Hat's original prison break, was revealed to be alive. Not only had the prison staff failed to kill the man/woman the first time, Bon Clay had secretly recruited a small Okama army of some of the world's most dangerous criminals, and had known which other prisoners would be the most willing to swear fealty to Straw Hat, or were loyal Revolutionaries. Most of the remaining convicts, predominantly male, had been killed by the Amazons before the Sun Pirates could intervene.

The only anomaly was that Doflamingo and his remaining Executives and Top Executives were also missing from their cells. Admiral Fujitora theorized that when Hancock turned people to stone, they were not truly 'dead,' ensuring their fearsome Devil Fruits could not reincarnate, keeping anyone else from possessing them. In all likelihood, those new statues had been buried underground where they would never be seen again.

Following Bon Clay's elevation to the 20th Division Commander, the fishmen had returned to the New World, while Hancock and Bon Clay remained behind to wreak havoc across Paradise, crushing any pirates who dared defy the authority of the Straw Hat Jolly Roger that flew over several islands, including Alabasta and the Sakura Kingdoms. Even Supernovas were targeted if it was suspected that they would challenge Straw Hat to prove their mettle. The fear of the Amazons was deeply entrenched there now, as she ruthlessly and pre-emptively protected the man she had publicly declared –at great length— to love.

The Celestial Dragons had furiously demanded Hancock's head, but Fleet Admiral Akainu, with the backing of the Five Elder Stars, had shockingly refused, choosing to concentrate their resources on the greater threat. Thus, the navy continued to deploy all available assets to the New World under Smoker's command – _No pressure!—_ , correctly designating the Pirate Emperors as a secondary priority. As it was, far too many islands were now already too vulnerable to raids by average pirates, and nothing could be spared to even attack Amazon Lily. The World Nobles response to this 'defiance' had not endeared them to the marines at large.

"By that logic Straw Hat's forces are too spread out, giving Blackbeard the opportunity to still win," Vice-Admiral Strawberry finally pointed out as the silence stretched on.

"No," Smoker flatly answered, then finally opening his eyes with a renewed fire dancing within them. "Tashigi!" he barked.

"Sir!" the commodore cried out as she snapped upright with a salute.

"Prepare G-5 for immediate deployment. Every last marine!"

"Sir?"

"We're going back to Paradise!"

The Vice-Admiral stared in shock, and even Tashigi hesitated for a moment before comprehension lit her face. "They're going to Raftel!" she whispered.

Admiral Fujitora looked up from his bowl of noodle soup at that, and nodded in understanding. "Blackbeard knows from his previous battles that he and his ten captains cannot defeat Straw Hat and his core crew, only fight them to a draw," to which some of the junior officers winced at the use of the term 'battles' to describe three separate events that had utterly destroyed _five_ entire islands and created two new _un_ natural environmental hazards, one of which could be seen from this very base on clear nights like tonight. Smiling a little as he sensed the reactions around him, the blind admiral continued, "So Blackbeard will have to claim the One Piece and the title of Pirate King to be ultimately victorious, and Straw Hat will be racing against him to claim it first."

"That's right," Smoker agreed as he picked up his sea-prism stone-tipped jitte and began to walk out of the meeting room. "Even if Blackbeard had never gone after Fire Fist or Whitebeard, the two of them are like wild dogs fighting over the same scrap of meat, and the Throne is the only thing that matters to either of them. They've been building up to this the whole time: a final clash between them. So we're going to sail back to meet the winner."

"But we don't have enough ships left in Paradise!" a rear-admiral cried out. "And no marine ship has returned from sailing under the Red Line!"

Interrogations of captured pirates and reports from spies made it clear that not only were no marine vessels that tried to sail to Fishman Island returning from the voyage, they were also not even reaching the underwater kingdom in the first place, just disappearing shortly after diving underwater. In hindsight it was obvious that the Government had made a grave and short-sighted mistake in rejecting King Neptune's petition at the last Reverie: letting fishmen immigrate to the surface.

The mermaid king had swallowed the public humiliation, acted docile and polite throughout the rest of the session, thanked men like King Riku or Princess Vivi for their passionate support…and had then gone and approached a close friend for help: Emperor Straw Hat.

Every island in the New World that flew the Straw Hat's flag now welcomed the fishmen with great enthusiasm as they swarmed to live above the ocean and under the sun. Like Whitebeard before him, the new Emperor asked for no tribute, and had only a few simple rules: "You do not hurt those who are under my flag; you do not hurt each other; slavery is forbidden; and you do not steal my meat." Discriminating against a Fishman (or a Mink, Dwarf, Giant, Longarm or Longleg) could cause a man's business to collapse, and trying to enslave a beautiful mermaid to sell to others was suicidal.

It was also after that incident that islands _outside_ of the New World had taken the unprecedented step of asking Straw Hat for his protection.

"Admiral?" Smoker asked his superior.

Nodding, Admiral Fujitora slowly lifted his massive frame out of his seat and calmly answered the unspoken question, "My powers can get your fleet over the Red Line."

Stabbing a finger at his fellow officers just before exiting the door, Smoker growled out his final instructions. "You three are in charge," he told three vice-admirals, not even bothering to say their names. "Don't do anything to provoke the Straw Hat fleet. Maintain the situation as it is. The rest of you are with me!"

Hustling to keep up, Commodore Tashigi asked the question she was almost dreading to know the answer too, "Are we really going to Reverse Mountain?"

"No," Fujitora answered from behind her, making the woman jump at how quietly the giant of a man had silently approached her. "Straw Hat will return to his hometown, like Gold Rogers did before him. And if Blackbeard wins their inevitable duel, then he will go to destroy Straw Hat's birthplace as his way of telling the world that he has won the Crown, and that his chief challenger is dead."

Smoker said nothing as he stormed down the halls, but inside he made his vow, _One way or another, it'll end on Dawn Island, and I know you'll make it there Straw Hat, but it_ will _end. Our final showdown!_

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 **Author Notes:**

 **I am confident Oda will continue to surprise us, but I just had to get these theories and thoughts off my chest. Later updated to accommodate new details from canon.**

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 **Please Review and I will get back to you!**


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